Prepping for Winter

[DayValleyDahlias]

Hi Folks,

Long time no talkie, hope you are all grand!

My questions concern preparing for Winter.  The new colonies that I have are in mediums, there are a total of four mediums to each colony.  I am planning to inspect within the next couple of days. 

Since Winter is coming, should I stop adding supers, even in the frames are all drawn out?

I want to leave them all the honey...I took very little, just enough to give them room for brood...

Thanks for your advice!*!

Hugs, Sharon

[JP]

well, hello Sharon everyone was just asking about you, hope you have been doing well!

I would stop adding supers and check to make sure you have enough bees covering the 4 mediums, you may even want to pull a box.

Too much room makes it harder for them to keep warm.


...JP

[Rodni73]

Hi!

I have been prepping my bees for their first winter here in New Jersey.  In late august I administered termicyn and fed the bees heavy sugar syrup in a top feeder. I also added to the syrup fymidel B for the nosema disease. I just added two gallons of medicated syrup and this will be the last feeding.

I have:

1-top feeder on top
2- 10 frame Medium half drawn out and filled!
3-10 frame Medium filled with caped honey!
4-10 frame Medium with both honey and brood
5-10 frames deep filled with honey, pollen and brood

I hope they will survive their first winter.

[DayValleyDahlias]

Thanks for the responses.  That is exactly the info I was needing.

We are having Indian Summer here ( at least for a few days )...so I am hoping to check them today!

Been busy with the farm. 

Cheers~*~*~

[renmag]

I live just over the ridge from you(Day Valley)
I just finished removing the supers from my two first year hives and have fed two gallons of 5:3 syrup with fumagilin-B. 
Also, I have started the application of Api Life Var for Varroa mites.  Lots of mite drop on my bottom board sticky sheet. 
My hives now consist of two deeps  and a top feeder.  We will see how it goes. Good luck.

[Michael Bush]

I keep supers on until there is no flow.  Then I pull any empty ones off and any I think they can spare.

[annette]

Hi Sharon

Check out the gardening forum and see the photo's I took of your dahlias. You will be very happy to see them.

My advice is to bring the hives down to 3 mediums for the winter so they have less space to keep warm.

You only need about 35-40 lbs of honey per hive for your area, so anything over that you can either extract for yourself, or freeze the frames and you will have something to feed back to them if they need it. From what I have read on the forum and elsewhere it is better not to have all that honey hanging over their heads, only what they need because the honey will get very cold and the cluster will be very warm. That can make condensation that can drip back down onto the cluster as ice water.

Hope you are well, I have been thinking about you and wondering why you weren't around. I am sure you must be very busy. Well come winter I suppose everyone will be back onto the forum.

Take care and Love
Annette

[johnnybigfish]

 yeh, Sharon.... :'(...I missed you too!
I got one of your flowers to bloom! I didnt know it untill annette posted pics of hers then thats how i found out :) It got too hot for most of my flowers this year.
Well,.....Its nice to see you post again!
your friend,
john

[DayValleyDahlias]

I am just now checking for mites, have no evidence so far.  Everyone is on foundationless.  I have not fed at all...

Renmag, which ridge are you over?  The ridge to Pleasant Valley, Bear Valley, or Forest and Meadows??

Would love to chat with you about local beekeeping...

S